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AC Line voltage powered LEDs?

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drventure:
@Eightbysix

Actually, I've played extensively with ELWire, See here

http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=88515.msg954990#msg954990

Easier to work with than I thought, and with a small control circuit, you can control it just as if it was a normal LED, via an LEDWiz, which makes it OH so much more interesting!

@Beley

Yeah, I've been looking for something like that but space is pretty limited under the base plate of the lamp, that's why those little bricks were so appealing. I think I'm going to go ahead and get the, and just wire up a test circuit with some scratch LED's I have. I'm thinking it'll work just fine since I've got a current limiting resistor in place, but, we'll see.

I don't have enough info yet on the bricks to know the internals.

My circuits a little more complicated that a single LED anyway..

I've got 6 flicker LEDs, wired in 2 banks of 3, each bank wired in series with a 470ohm resistor in line (this according to an online LED calculator I've used in the past). The 470 is a bit high (it actually called for 330), but, I don't mind them being a little dimmer, and I tested that out up front, using a different supply, but everything worked just fine.

I guess I'll find out when I get the bricks!

Thanks

Beley:
What exactly is a flicker led anyway? is it like one of thous LED candles? can you post a link.

drventure:
Sorry, yes, it's the led out of those fake tea light LED candles.

They flicker by themselves, you basically just hook em up like a regular LED. Very cool effect to embed them into other stuff.

RoyalScam:
Just my .02;

@BobA
--- Quote ---but the multiple leds should not have the vertical connection on each pair.
--- End quote ---

These are needed to protect the low inverse voltage of the LEDs as long as one led is conducting, the other in the antiparallel configuration will be spared.

Also a resistor with a value of at least 1 meg and a voltage rating of 250 to 350 volts(dependent on line voltage) should be placed across the ac line to discharge the capacitor in this circuit when power is removed.

But I gotta tell ya, this circuit kinda creeps me out.  I wouldn't even breadboard this without an isolation transformer, and I bet without one, it'd cause 120hz buzz in any audio circuits placed nearby.

Regards,
Scam

drventure:
Yeah, I have no problems working with 5 or 12v stuff, but 120v ac... I think I'll leave that to those more qualified that I and just buy a prebuilt power brick.

But that's good info. Thanks!

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